


Take Good Care of my Baby

by mcgarrygirl78



Series: Starting Over [29]
Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-10-15
Updated: 2012-10-15
Packaged: 2017-11-16 08:19:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,578
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/537417
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mcgarrygirl78/pseuds/mcgarrygirl78
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Beth probably would've squee’d if her chest didn’t feel so congested.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Take Good Care of my Baby

“It’s just a bug, I’ll be OK.”

“You don’t sound OK.” Hotch said. “You sound awful.”

“Well thank you.” Beth laughed some but that turned into coughing. OK, no more laughing.

“Aww baby…” he sighed. “I should've stayed this morning. I should've checked on you before rushing off.”

“Aaron, you weren't rushing. You had to get Jack to Sam and Jessie’s and I was sound asleep. Please don’t blame yourself; you didn’t make me sick.”

“I should be with you now.”

“I could be contagious.” Beth reasoned.

“I don’t care. You're not going to be alone while you're sick.”

“You took off Friday and Tuesday so I'm sure there is plenty of work waiting for you. Tomorrow is Jack’s first day of school so that’s going to be busy as well. I’ll be fine.”

“I’ll do what I always do.” Hotch said.

“What do you mean?”

“I’ll make a way. How are you feeling right now?”

“I'm a little woozy. My throat is scratchy, there's a little ache, and I definitely have a slight fever. I would take my temperature but that would require getting out of bed. Nelle is with me…she's excellent company. Thanks for walking her this morning. You had to get up way too early.”

“An amazing boyfriend’s job is never done.” He smiled, his dimples coming out to play. “You need to rest; I’ll call to check on you later. Do you have water close by? I don’t want you to get dehydrated.”

“Yes Dr. Hotchner, I do. I'm just going to sleep. Hopefully when I wake up I’ll feel much better. You and Jack feel alright, don’t you?”

“We’re fine. I’ll call Jessie just to double check on Jack. Are you sure you don’t want me to come home?”

Home. Beth probably would've squee’d if her chest didn’t feel so congested. It was probably a Freudian slip but that didn’t mean she couldn’t let it make her happy. She, Aaron, and Jack had just spent 4 days away in Colonial Williamsburg. 

They came back last night and stayed at her place. There was dessert, TV, story time with Jack…they were like a real family. She and Aaron both knew they weren't quite there yet but being together felt good. Hearing him say the word home felt so good.

“I do want you to come home but you're not. What's the fun in watching me sleep all day?”

“I'm sure I could find some way to entertain myself.” Hotch replied.

“Stay in Quantico and get some work done.” Beth said.

“I’ll call later to check on you. Is that alright; I don’t want the phone to disturb your sleep?”

“I’ll be asleep again when we hang up so give me a few hours and then call back.”

“I will. I'm sorry you're not feeling well. I'm sorry I'm not there.”

“I’ll make it.” she wanted to say come home, hold me, and never let go. She’d get over it. She’d had him to herself for days; of course she’d been feeling great then. “We’ll talk later.”

“I love you.” Hotch said.

“I love you too.”

“Bye.”

Hotch didn’t want to hang up but he did. Then he called Jessie. He wanted to make sure that Jack was OK. School started tomorrow, which meant that a billion and one germs would congregate in one place. They did a pretty good job of keeping Jack healthy but he always got at least two illnesses a year. It would be a good thing if that didn’t happen before the fact.

***

He had a key to her place. He’d had it for a few months now. Hotch and Beth had been dating for almost a year. He didn’t know the exact amount of time before the key exchange took place but Beth gave it to him because there were some late nights in their relationship. 

Beth wasn’t always in the mood to get out of bed at the God knows what time Aaron drove in from Quantico. She also had a key to his place as well. There were times when she and Jack hung out without his father. He always wanted Beth to feel comfortable in his condo. Both he and Jack felt that way when they stayed with her.

Georgetown parking sucked but that was well known. Even though it was raining, Hotch had to park three blocks down and two blocks over to Beth’s apartment. It wasn’t such a bad walk tonight as the weather was warm despite the rain. There were people all over the place, Georgetown rarely slept. A few even said good evening and Hotch responded in kind. He saw such darkness in his job and his life that sometimes he forgot that people could still be cordial and certainly kind.

He let himself in, putting his umbrella in the stand by the front door. Hotch turned and doubled locked the door before walking back to the kitchen with his grocery bag. He did an excellent job of being quiet as Beth didn’t stir from sleeping on the couch. Nelle didn’t bark, thankfully, but did jump down from the couch and follow Hotch. When she stood at his feet, he put his finger on his lips so she wouldn’t make any noise. Nelle was a dog, Hotch had no idea if she would understand or not, but she kept quiet. Then he made his way back into the living room.

Beth was lying on the couch wrapped in her favorite afghan. She was sound asleep as the television played on mute. Hotch turned it off. He crouched down in front of her; there was no room on the couch to sit. Hotch put the back of his hand on her forehead. It was clammy…she seemed to have a low grade fever. He stroked her cheek.

“Hey, hey Bethy; wake up sweetie. C'mon sweetie, open your eyes.”

“You made it.” she slowly opened her eyes and smiled. 

“I walked.” Hotch kissed her nose. 

“What time is it?”

“It’s close to seven o’clock.”

“You're here early.”

“You're not feeling well…I wanted to be here.”

“Noah stopped by.” Beth said. He was one of her best friends. “He brought lunch, more medicine, and walked Nelle. That was hours ago though. I came downstairs before he left.”

“Well we need to get you back upstairs and into bed. I have dinner, Gatorade, and Nyquil.”

“Mmm, did you say Nyquil? Have I told you lately that I love you?”

“It was just this afternoon as a matter of fact, Rod Stewart.”

Beth laughed a little, and then she coughed. Hotch looked sorry for her as he helped her sit up on and then stand up from the couch. She was surprised when he picked her up in his arms and walked to the stairs.

“OK, in my sexy fantasy when you carry me up to the bedroom,” Beth leaned her head on his chest. “I'm not snotting on your lapels.”

“Am I in a ripped shirt like Fabio?” Hotch asked grinning.

“You're in a Hanes tee shirt.”

“We’ll definitely have to have that conversation when you're feeling better. How’s your appetite?”

“Um…”

“I’ll just give you a little.” He walked into the master bedroom and laid Beth in the bed. “I got some brown rice in chicken broth. Just eat a little; it'll be good for you.”

“You guys know me too well.” she smiled as he covered her with the blanket.

“What do you mean?” Hotch asked.

“Noah brought me the same thing this afternoon. He got it from the Dumpling Palace.”

“So did I.”

“I am so loved.” Beth smiled. “Can you fluff my pillows?”

“Yes ma'am.” He smiled and did as she asked. “I’ll be right back with dinner.”

“Hey, where’s Jack tonight?”

“He's with Jessie and Sam. I called him on the way over to tell him that you were under the weather so I was coming to take care of you. He said get well soon and that he’ll call tomorrow to tell you all about his first day of school. I'm going to get up early so that I can pick him up and take him.”

“You're stretching yourself too thin.” She replied.

“I’ll be fine. Now relax and I'm going to get your dinner.”

“Thanks.” 

Beth smiled and closed her eyes. Despite being worried about him doing too much, she was glad Aaron was there tonight. Being sick sucked and Beth needed to get back on her feet. She needed to get back to work. Lying around all day, even if she needed to, was hard to do. 

That was something she and Aaron had in common. They were going to lie around together tonight. Even drugged and snotty, Beth was in no position to complain about that. She let her thoughts drift to them living in one residence, saving Aaron all the trouble of running around. It wasn’t time yet, and she wasn’t sure when it would be. 

Not that she would turn him down if he asked right now. The answer would be yes as soon as she got the question. Never one to be patient, maybe Beth would ask the question herself soon. She wouldn’t ask tonight. Tonight was all about a light dinner, more drugs, and cuddling with her man for a good night’s sleep. He made her his top priority tonight; she was going to enjoy every snotty moment of it.

***


End file.
